I am happy. I have a great mission in front of me. I can't think of anything else I would rather be doing. Well, except running Manohla's studio with her:

""If I were running a studio (ha!), I would take the money that I’d set aside for the next bad idea (like a remake of “Total Recall”) and give a handful of directors, tested and less so — Todd Haynes, Barry Jenkins, Kelly Reichardt, Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Aaron Katz, Benh Zeitlin, Damien Chazelle — $10 million apiece to make whatever they want, as long as the results come in with an R rating or below and don’t run over two hours."

I am so heartened by this action. These filmmakers are all real leaders. I love that they have spoken up for artists' right of freedom of expression on a worldwide basis. We enjoy tremendous freedom here in the USA, but until that is shared by everyone, none of us can truly be free. We must be united in preserving this right for all.
Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Robert Redford, Francis Ford Coppola, Terrence Malick, Steven Soderbergh, the Coen Bros., Jim Jarmusch, Michael Moore, Ang Lee, Robert De Niro, and Oliver Stone, among other leading film industry figures, have condemned the detention of Jafar Panahi, the acclaimed director of "The White Balloon" and "Offside," and are urging the Iranian government to release him

New York, NY (April 30, 2010) – Jafar Panahi, an internationally acclaimed Iranian director of such award-winning films as The White Balloon, The Circle, Crimson Gold and Offside, was arrested at his home on March 1st and has been held since in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison. A number of filmmaking luminaries have come to Mr. Panahi's defense and "condemn his detention and strongly urge the Iranian government to release Mr. Panahi immediately," according to a new petition. (Petition text and full list of signatories is available below.)

Islamic Republic officials initially charged Mr. Panahi with “unspecified crimes.” They have since reversed themselves, and the charges now allege that he was making a film against the regime, a very serious accusation in Iran.

Mr. Panahi’s films have been banned from screening in Iran for the past ten years and he has been kept from working for the past four years, but he continues to stay in Iran.

"Mr. Panahi deeply loves his country," says Jamsheed Akrami, an Iranian-American film scholar and filmmaker, who helped organize the petition. "Even though he knows he could have opportunities to work freely outside of his homeland, he has repeatedly refused to leave. He would never do anything against the national interests of his country and his people."

Mr. Panahi is one of the most heralded directors in the world. He has won such top prizes as the Silver Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival for Offside (2006), the Un Certain Regard Prize at the Cannes Film Festival for Crimson Gold (2003), the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival for The Circle (2000), the Golden Leopard at the Locarno International Film Festival for The Mirror
(1997) and the Cannes Camera d'Or for The White Balloon (1995).

PETITION: Free Jafar Panahi

Jafar Panahi, the internationally acclaimed Iranian director of such award-winning films as The White Balloon, The Circle, Crimson Gold and Offside, was arrested at his home on March 1st in a raid by plain-clothed security forces. He has been held since then in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison.

A recent letter from Mr. Panahi’s wife expressed her deep concerns about her husband's heart condition, and about his having been moved to a smaller cell. Mr. Panahi’s films have been banned from screening in Iran for the past ten years and he has effectively been kept from working for the past four years. Last October, his passport was confiscated and he was banned from leaving the country. Upon his arrest, Islamic Republic officials initially charged Mr. Panahi with “unspecified crimes.” They have since reversed themselves, and the charges are now specifically related to his work as a filmmaker.

We (the undersigned) stand in solidarity with a fellow filmmaker, condemn this detention, and strongly urge the Iranian government to release Mr. Panahi immediately.

Iran’s contributions to international cinema have been rightfully heralded, and encouraged those of us outside the country to respect and cherish its people and their stories. Like artists everywhere, Iran’s filmmakers should be celebrated, not censored, repressed, and imprisoned.

I am delighted that I was able to help in securing some of the directors' participation that the Organizing Committee had selected. The prompt response and eagerness to help that I encountered from both the individual directors and their companies was truly inspiring.

SF Film Society Blog

These gams graced the #SFIFF stage some four springs ago, and they'll be strolling their way back into this year's Festival lineup. We will make our first program announcement TOMORROW! Find out who owns these lovely blue tights and be at the ready to purchase tickets to this awesome Live & Onstage event. #SFFSmembers: you get first crack at snagging a seat. Not yet a member? Consider joining the Film Society. Trust us, no one belongs here more than you.

#TBT: San Francisco International Film Festival founder Irving Levin just before the second-ever #SFIFF (1958). This spring, we are proud to attach his name to the Festival prize that has honored him for so many years. Our Founder's Directing Award — presented in recent years to legendary filmmakers such as #RichardLinklater, #SpikeLee & #FrancisFordCoppola — will going forward be known as the Irving M. Levin Directing Award in memory of this passionate and driven Bay Area film exhibitor.

Last week, we announced the finalists for our #DocumentaryFilmFund, a competitive cash grant that supports post-production work on nonfiction films. We selected 11 outstanding projects after combing through more than 300 apps — read about these films on @indiewire at bit.ly/DFFfinalists2015. In the meantime, a #TBT to one of last year's grantees, #TomorrowWeDisappear. The doc follows a magician, puppeteer and an acrobat — all members of a small artist colony tucked away in New Delhi — as the neighborhood they inhabit begins to attract real estate developers and eviction looms on the horizon. Read more about past winners and the various ways that #SFFSsupports doc & #indiefilm at sffs.org.

#TBT: #SpikeLee & #DannyGlover at #SFIFF 29, for the world premiere of Lee's film She's Gotta Have It. Over the years, we've screened a variety of Lee's work, from his graduate school thesis film We Cut Heads to to his 2006 doc about the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, When the Levees Broke: A Requiem In Four Acts. We also honored Lee at SFIFF 50 with the Festival's prestigious Founder's Directing Award. Love this filmmaker? His latest, #DaSweetBloodOfJesus, opens at the #RoxieTheater tomorrow!

#SFIFF 58 is just down the road! This year's Festival will run from April 23-May 7, and we will release our full program roster on March 31. In the meantime, stay tuned: a few select special events will be announced in advance. #SFFSmembers get first crack at purchasing tickets to all Festival programs. Not a member? Join now and beat the #SFIFF rush. Photo: #TheAmazingCatfish by Claudia Sainte-Luce (SFIFF 57).

Animator #TommMoore engaged in a live drawing demonstration at a local elementary school. Moore screened his #AcademyAward-nominated film #SongOfTheSea for nearly 300 Bay Area students through the SFFS Education program just a few weeks ago. Learn more about his visit with us and about our time with legendary Disney animator #GlenKeane on the Film Society Blog at blog.sffs.org.

Get YR hair did and head over to the #AsianArtMuseum this Thursday night! Their latest exhibition Seduction: Japan's Floating World kicks off with an awesome opening night party DJed by Proof (AKA @markyenriquez) and peppered with installations & performances by artist & sexuality educator @planetmidori. #SFFSmembers: want to join in the fun for free? Email community@sffs.org by 5p tonight with your name & member number for your chance to win a pair of tickets. Subject should read 'Courtesans & Cooks' & body should include reason why you want to go! Image: Courtesan promenading under cherry blossoms by Katsushika Hokuun, John C. Weber Collection. #TheFloatingWorld

Filmmakers: this is your final weekend to apply to the SFFS / KRF Filmmaking Grant! Get your materials together & submit by Feb. 17. This award funds narrative feature films in all stages of production. In addition to cash prizes, grantees receive one-on-one project consultation, fundraising assistance and access to the full suite of filmmaker services at #SFFS. You need not be local to apply! Pictured: #MosquitaYMari, a film about the evolving friendship between two Chicana high schoolers in Los Angeles, 2011 grant recipient. #SFFSsupports #indiefilm

Very saddened about the passing of journalist #DavidCarr. An amazing writer & forward thinker. Honored to have screened #PageOne: A Year Inside the #NewYorkTimes at #SFIFF 54, #AndrewRossi's in-depth portrait of the paper as it began transitioning into the digital era. Carr became the unexpected star of this film, and came to life on screen as a champion of the Times and an early adopter of new media. His voice will be missed by NYT readers & film lovers everywhere.

Filmmaker #AndrewRossi at #SFIFF 54, just before we screened his documentary #PageOne: A Year Inside the #NewYorkTimes. Journalist #DavidCarr became the unexpected star Rossi's film, and came to life on screen as a champion of the Times and an early adopter of new media. An amazing writer and forward thinker, Carr will be missed by NYT readers & film lovers everywhere.

In anticipation of this Friday's release of Boyhood with the filmmaker returning to SF for a round of Q&As, watch the onstage interview with Richard Linklater and Parker Posey and Boyhood Q&A from An Evening with Richard Linklater at the 57th San Francisco International Film Festival!

The San Francisco Film Society wrapped its 57th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 24–May 8) with 263 screenings of 168 films from 56 countries, which were attended by over 300 filmmakers and industry guests from over 20 countries. Over 15 days, SFIFF57 showed 74 narrative features, 29 documentary features and a total of 65 short films. See all the highlights and photo galleries!

Last night, the 57th San Francisco International Film Festival announced the winners of the juried Golden Gate Award and New Directors Prize competitionsat an event held at Rouge | Nick’s Crispy Tacos. This year the Festival awarded nearly $40,000 in prizes to emerging and established filmmakers from 13 countries around the globe!